"Teacher Mokgetsu, when can we start training in nature transformation? I've been reading the manual you gave me every night, and I'm eager to try it out." Obito asked as he walked back and forth on the small river.
Walking on trees and treading water every day was getting really dull.
Moreover, the nature transformation manual from Mokgetsu had indeed been enlightening, and he felt like his Fire Release was about to become proficient.
"You find walking on water boring? Have you almost mastered it?" Mokgetsu asked with a smile.
"Uh-huh." Obito nodded quickly; he'd already managed a light jog on the water.
"Alright then, let me test your level, and I'll make water walking a bit more interesting for you at the same time." Mokgetsu swiftly formed hand seals, Chakra bursting forth.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bomb Jutsu!"
A massive water dragon quickly formed and then rolled around in the small river, turning the calm surface turbulent, occasionally lifting up a huge wave.
"Waaagh..." Obito accidentally plunged headfirst into the water, taking a big gulp.
Mokgetsu immediately fished Obito out, laughing, "You see, you still haven't fully mastered it."
"Teacher Mokgetsu, how am I supposed to withstand such a sudden move?" Obito retorted.
With classmates watching and a family junior present, he still wanted to save face.
"Then try again." Mokgetsu chuckled.
Walking on water tests a ninja's control over sustained Chakra output. With a Water Dragon Bomb to distract them, and having to dodge waves, maintaining steady Chakra output in such conditions would indicate excellent Chakra control ability.
Obito talked a big game, but his skills weren't up to par; he fell into the water again within minutes.
"The shoes I'm wearing today don't fit well, which affected my performance." Obito explained after spitting out some river water, then put his shoes aside on the bank, walking barefoot on the water.
Mokgetsu smiled slightly, saying nothing.
After a while, Obito fell into the water once more.
"Ah, it must be because I stayed up late reading last night and am not fully alert today. No wonder I've made so many mistakes."
Obito stretched his limbs, twisted his neck, rolled up his sleeves, and his eyes turned serious, "Alright, time to get serious now."
Splash!
The sound of falling into the water was heard once again.
After Mokgetsu quickly pulled Obito out, Obito's eyes were blank, his face expressionless, and he said nothing more.
"Obito, it's alright. I know you just wanted to learn to swim, that's all." Shisui comforted him.
Obito covered his face with both hands and said, "Shisui, just mind your own business, I'll be fine on my own."
"Feeling like you performed terribly?" Mokgetsu crouched down next to Obito, looking out into the distance instead of at him.
As the saying goes, comparison leads to disappointment.
Before Obito had started training in control exercises, Shisui had already begun.
And Shisui's progress was swift. He skipped tree climbing from the start and walking on water was a breeze, maintaining stability even with distractions from Mokgetsu.
With such a performance from his clan brother Shisui, Obito just couldn't admit that he might not be as good as Shisui, but shouldn't be much worse either.
"Actually, the reason I left last Sunday afternoon was to serve as a home tutor at the Hokage's house," Mokgetsu said.
"The Hokage has a younger son, you should know him, Sarutobi Asuma, just a year ahead of you."
Obito nodded; he knew Asuma indeed.
"When he was training in water walking, I used the Water Dragon Bomb to disrupt him too. He fell into the water dozens of times in an afternoon, finally lasting five minutes on the last attempt."
"Asuma actually..." Obito never expected that the exemplary student from Ninja School, Asuma, had such a difficult time, yet still persisted through an entire afternoon under such harsh conditions.
Obito couldn't help seeing Asuma in a new light; he hadn't noticed his perseverance before.
"Teacher, I understand now. I'm rested and ready to train!" Obito took a deep breath and said with renewed vigor.
If Asuma could persist, why couldn't he? After all, his goal was to defeat Kakashi in front of Rin and take first place!
"Eat something before you train." Mokgetsu handed Obito a serving of dango he had bought earlier.
"Mm, thank you, Teacher!" Obito shouted energetically, quickly finishing the dango before heading into the river.
[You gifted your disciple a red bean dango, and due to your disciple's deep gratitude, a critical reward was triggered, obtaining the Chef skill.]
[Chef: Your dishes are so delicious that they can cause illusions.]
"Huh, it actually triggered a skill, and a lifestyle one at that," Mokgetsu thought with a bit of surprise.
While gifting disciples sometimes resulted in unexpected boons, like Might Guy gaining mastery in Water Nature Transformation, Mokgetsu found it odd that Obito triggered the Chef skill.
Nevertheless, Mokgetsu couldn't help feeling pleased, as the skill appeared to be quite powerful from its description.
Cooking well was definitely a major plus.
If he had acquired this skill earlier, he could've pretended that his cooking equipment at home was broken, then gone to Minato's home to showcase his extraordinary culinary skills. Maybe Kushina and Minato would've sought him out as a friend directly.
It could also quickly boost the disciples' affection; who wouldn't love a teacher with top-notch teaching quality who was also an amazing cook?
After all the disciples completed their training, Mokgetsu returned early to the Main Konoha District to test how delicious the dishes made with his new skill would be.
Mokgetsu chose two dishes, one was fried rice with egg, and the other was tempura.
He had made fried rice with egg before, as he enjoyed eating dishes with eggs. However, he had never made tempura before.
From the moment he picked up the egg, Mokgetsu felt an inexplicable sense of wonder, and although the steps were quite similar to before, everything was just perfect.
After finishing the fried rice, looking at the distinct grains shimmering with a golden hue, Mokgetsu was a bit dazed.
He thought he didn't add any fluorescent powder while frying, yet somehow it seemed to glow.
Mokgetsu took a bite with a spoon, the tenderness of the eggs, the springiness of the rice, and the aroma of the green onions burst in his mouth. He had never tasted such delicious fried rice before.
Mokgetsu even vaguely saw a vigorous chicken sometimes running, sometimes flying across the grass; it was so free, so exhilarating.
"It actually is delicious enough to cause illusions," Mokgetsu shook his head, quickly regaining his senses.
Mokgetsu then switched to a frying pan, ready to fry the tempura.
He first prepared the batter and then heated the oil in the pan. After coating the prepped shrimp in batter, he placed them in the pan to fry.
Soon, the tempura's coating started to change color, and a unique fragrance of frying filled the kitchen, wafting far and wide.
Trusting his instincts, Mokgetsu lifted the tempura, placed them on a plate, and set it on the table.
As Mokgetsu picked up a piece of tempura to try the taste, there was a knock at the door.